Lecture (1)

After finishing the run, Ayla and Flora went off together to grab breakfast.

I gathered it was a sandwich shop with a reputation around the academy.

Maybe Flora regretted leaving me out, because she emphasized several times that we absolutely had to go together next time.

She was acting like an anxious puppy, so I gave her my word and sent her on her way.

Anyway, I did notice one thing during this run.

Flora was so sociable that I could feel her growing closer to Ayla in just a short time.

There was no problem with it, since her intentions were good.

Above all, from what I quietly observed, she seemed to be genuinely enjoying herself.

Looking at it now, concealing my identity so thoroughly all this time had been a masterstroke.

Even after my arrest, most people in the Empire didn't know my name or face.

Putting those various thoughts aside.

I moved to the location Flora had given me, and a fairly impressive building came into view.

They were running a Magic Device Shop in an area with decent foot traffic.

"This the place?"

I'd never been here before, so it must have opened while I was incarcerated.

If it had been running without ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠a hitch all this time, I had to figure the business sense was decent.

As for the details, I could just hear them from the guy who was supposedly on leave.

I approached without a shred of hesitation.

Jingle.

When I pulled the door open, a clear bell chime rang out.

The place was quiet, empty of people inside.

I slowly turned my head, taking it all in from a customer's perspective.

Seeing up close what I'd only glimpsed through the window drew real admiration from me.

High-quality Mana Stones were spread out before my eyes. It had been a long time since I'd seen them piled high by the crate.

"Oh-ho, not bad."

I picked up a suitable Mana Stone and examined it from every angle.

They must have put real effort into maintenance, because the experimental materials and grimoires were spotless too—nothing to fault.

I took a brief look around for my own amusement.

I moved to find Alcyone.

I figured he was probably killing time at the counter, leisurely tilting back in a chair.

If that were the case, I meant to give him a knuckle rap. I was moving fast when—

"Welcome…?"

A voice I hadn't heard in a long time reached my ears.

I turned my head, and Alcyone showed himself, poking his head out from a corner.

"…Boss?"

"It's been a while."

He probably responded thinking a customer had come in, but his edge seemed to have dulled while I was gone.

Shouldn't he have recognized my identity the moment the door opened?

"What were you doing hiding in the corner?"

"I was cleaning the floor."

Alcyone sprang to his feet in an instant and straightened up.

The hand towel clutched in his right hand spoke for itself.

He was clearly tense at my sudden visit.

"Hmm. That explains why it's so clean."

"O-of course…"

As I got closer to Alcyone, I spotted a name tag reading "Manager."

That raised one question in my mind.

The manager runs a Magic Device Shop, so why was he doing this in the morning instead of leaving it to a perfectly capable employee?

I genuinely couldn't understand it.

"Where's the staff? You can just have them do this kind of work."

"It's before their shifts, so I was handling it myself."

Even though his job had changed, his diligent nature hadn't.

Whenever we moved together, he'd always prepare and stand by in advance.

I was recalling those memories and moving to the main topic when Alcyone bowed his head.

"I apologize… had I known you were coming, I would have at least prepared some warm tea."

"I came by on a simple errand. Don't worry about it."

"An, an errand, you say?"

"It's not urgent, so relax. Let's just talk about what you've been up to."

First, I wanted to ease the stiff atmosphere.

I also intended to use this chance to fill in the gap created by ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠my incarceration.

"How long have you been at this?"

"Not long. About a year now, I'd say."

"Oh-ho."

When I gave a positive reaction, Alcyone shrugged his shoulders, looking secretly pleased.

Ignoring that, I carefully assessed the shop.

For one thing, it was remarkable that it had grown this large in a single year.

The place seemed to be doing good business, since I didn't see any neglected merchandise.

But in the underworld, when you set up a shop like this, the outside and inside are usually different things.

Especially when it came to money, there were a few common methods.

Shops like this were sometimes spread out in multiple locations to serve as money-laundering points.

Of course, that was a different kind of story.

Fortunately for us, our operation made its money in the gray zone, which made it hard for the Empire to step in readily.

Yet here I was out of prison, and a shop I'd never seen before had appeared.

On top of that, I was now closer than before to the Empire, which could become a nuisance, so I asked just in case.

"It's not for money laundering, is it?"

"How could I, when it isn't even the black market? More importantly, it runs completely counter to the organization's direction."

"Fair enough."

Luckily, that wasn't the case.

I continued examining the Magic Devices until I felt reassured.

Then Alcyone explained why the shop had been established.

"Lady Flora prepared it, saying that since you, Boss, are fond of magic, it could be put to use when needed."

"Is that true?"

"Yes. Perhaps it's a release present."

A release present, huh…

The corner of my mouth lifted of its own accord.

The fact that she didn't overlook even these small details showed exactly why I trusted and valued Flora.

To repay that, it was time to put my power to use.

I lightly tapped Alcyone on the shoulder to catch his attention.

"Let's do a job. Been a while."

"Aren't I working right now?"

Alcyone stared at me blankly.

When you got down to it, what he was doing now was certainly work.

He was operating a Magic Device Shop, after all.

But that wasn't the kind of work I wanted.

I snatched the cleaning tool Alcyone was holding away from him.

"That's your vacation. Flora told me—you asked for time off to do this."

"That's a misunderstanding!"

Alcyone, who'd shown no particular emotional reaction up to now, reacted sharply to the word "vacation."

He protested his innocence at a furious pace.

"I am managing this place under legitimate orders. Lady Flora must have been joking about the vacation."

"You mean that?"

"Yes. How could I request a vacation on a whim?"

I supposed, even considering the circumstances, Alcyone would never do something like that.

If anything, he was the type to stand by awaiting orders.

In a flash, Flora's earlier words and actions passed through my mind.

I could vividly imagine her right now, giggling over a successful prank.

'Flora, honestly…'

Realizing only now that it had been a joke, my expression turned sheepish.

Seeing this, Alcyone brushed it off as nothing important, too.

Anyway.

Putting the preamble aside, I handed Alcyone a small note.

"Use this as a substitute. Confirm the contents."

"Understood."

For security's sake, I replaced a verbal exchange with a note.

I heard the paper unfold, and Alcyone's eyes moved rapidly.

Judging by the distinctly shifted atmosphere, his skills were still sharp.

"All confirmed."

Before long, he cleanly burned the note.

I took that to mean he'd read every last word, and I turned to leave.

* * *

"Out of all the places, why be here?"

The chancellor posed the question in a voice thick with bewilderment.

Ignoring that, I brewed some coffee and sank into the plush sofa.

"Mm, well, you see."

A light sip before speaking.

"I came by because I had nothing particular to do."

After leaving the investigation to Alcyone, I'd returned to the academy and headed straight for the chancellor's office.

And with good reason.

I was an outside instructor. I had no defined duties, which made me a free man.

So I'd wandered around as I pleased and ultimately circled back here.

Above all, staying near Flora was convenient in many ways.

So I figured I'd kill time here and then head back to the lodging with her.

"The coffee really is excellent."

I set the cup down and studied the chancellor's face.

Under normal circumstances, showing up unannounced would be unwelcome, but he had nothing to say about it.

If anything, I got the feeling he thought my timing was perfect.

Finding that suspicious, I made eye contact with the chancellor. I felt a gaze that seemed to size me up in an unpleasant way.

In that moment, my instincts screamed at me to get out of there immediately.

"I'll be going now."

"Hold on just a moment."

No sooner had I risen from the sofa than the chancellor blocked my way.

He immediately pressed firmly down on both my shoulders and sat me back down.

A moment's hesitation, and my escape route was cut off.

The chancellor hurriedly sat on the opposite side, cleared his throat, and then—

"Instructor Karon."

"Yes. What is it?"

"I heard you gave Miss Ayla some advice."

"Where did you hear that?"

"The Magic Tower Master said so."

It was faster than I'd expected.

Since Ayla was the Magic Tower Master's apprentice, it was only natural that it reached his ears.

Then the chancellor was bound to get word, too.

That was because the Magic Tower and the academy were closely intertwined institutions.

Capable graduates often ended up entering the Magic Tower.

From the chancellor's untroubled tone, it didn't seem he viewed it negatively.

At this rate, the day might come when I'd have to face the Magic Tower Master in person.

If that day did come, I could also likely obtain information on the Artifact whose nature remained a complete mystery.

But that aside, the chancellor began, brimming with enthusiasm, to say what he wanted.

"Hearing that news, I arranged a lecture schedule right away."

"Those weren't empty words?"

"I had my share of concerns over what you did. But the higher-ups had their wishes."

Then came a truly startling statement.

"Let's start lightly with three months. How about it?"

At that, my head, which had been still, slowly tilted to one side.

I couldn't understand what on earth made the chancellor trust me with this.

Without beating around the bush, I immediately asked his reason.

"Setting aside teaching or not, what makes you trust a Class-A wanted criminal with this?"

"I still have my doubts about you. But your skill is something I can't deny."

"Hmm…"

"To be frank about the academy's current situation, we are sorely lacking lectures related to field operations. You'll be in charge of that."

I had never expected the future I'd one day face to come so soon.

To think that, because they'd gotten a handle on how to manage a fierce predator, their first instinct was to put him to use.

In that case, just as the Empire used me, I decided to use the chancellor.

"I'll give you the lecture you want, so introduce me to the upper echelons of the Calde Order. You must have those connections."

"How do you know about that?"

"There's a reason the Empire keeps its eye on me."

I exploited the fact that the chancellor was close to a cardinal of the Calde Order.

A startled look crossed his face, and then he tapped his thigh with his index finger.

"Wait just a moment."

"Take all the time you need to think."

He was probably calculating the risks that would arise from introducing me.

After a moment, the chancellor spoke with a very serious expression.

"I'll hear the reason first, then answer. What is this about?"

"The Demons, of course."

"Demons… Demons. It must be because of your brother."

"Correct."

"I understand. I will arrange a meeting."

Just like that, I easily secured a channel to the Calde Order, the state religion representing the Empire.

I'd made a decent deal, so it was about time to wrap this up.

I set down my empty cup and rose from my seat.

"So when is the lecture?"

"I'd gone and forgotten the most important detail."

The chancellor spoke, nodding his head repeatedly.

"You can go now. There are about thirty minutes left, so take your time heading to the lecture hall."

"…?"

"I didn't give you the details. It was set up for the first-years. The lecture hall is…"

For the next ten minutes, I got treated to the chancellor's explanations and advice.

I considered cutting him off midway but let it slide in silence.

Finally, I received the documents he'd hurriedly brought over, and ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠all preparations were complete.

With a half-skeptical look, the chancellor squeezed my right hand and gave me one last instruction.

"Just don't cause any incidents."

"Nothing of the sort will happen."

Teaching half-heartedly would be the end of it.

What's the big deal…

So I went where the chancellor had said, and in the distance I spotted the lecture hall.

Since the first session was apparently starting today, many students were coming and going, and the place was bustling.

"I'm supposed to be lecturing here, right?"

"Yeah. The timetable said so."

Watching all that overflowing energy, I felt a long-missed sense of tranquility.

It was the polar opposite of risking my life or killing someone.

In just a short while, I would be teaching someone.

With nothing but the lecture title the chancellor had made up—"Mana Control Application and Practice"—I was supposed to lead ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠students.

Honestly, I hadn't come up with any plan, thinking I'd only be doing this briefly in the distant future.

I'd only intended to help Ayla, just enough to give her a gentle nudge along.

I'd figured this process would last about a month at most.

Build up their stamina, give them a bit of real-world experience, and then be done with it.

But I hadn't known that the first feedback would reach the Magic Tower Master's ears so quickly and then come back around to me through the chancellor.

I glanced at the steadily approaching lecture hall and racked my brain fast.

I had no lesson plan, and I had to guide students who were mostly at Level 2 or 3.

For someone who'd always been raised in the remote Northern Region of the Continent, this was a new challenge.

"Should I look up a curriculum or something after this?"

If I half-heartedly taught and the chancellor used that as a pretext to extend my sentence, it'd be a pain in the neck, so if I was going to do it, I wanted to do it right.

That way, I could seize the upper hand once the lectures were finished.

No sharp ideas came to mind.

It would have been easier to just ruin some bastard who messed with my organization.

"Or maybe I should introduce them to the Crash Course."

The method that had forged Alcyone into an excellent member of the organization came to mind.

I could proudly call it a short-term education that finished in a single month.

'The effect is certain, but the downside…'

Ding, ding.

Just as I was about to continue that thought, a bell rang out, breaking the silence and signaling the start of the lecture.

I couldn't afford the disgrace of being late on the very first day.

"Well, I'll just stick to the essence of education."

I casually straightened my rumpled clothes and opened the lecture hall door.